6 Tips for Résumé Writing

Applying for a new job is a full-time job, not to mention stressful in many other ways. Your résumé must be strong, typo-free, hit on keywords and use present tense and feature action verbs to grab that dream job.

I had the pleasure of speaking to CUES Women in Leadership webcast series for a session I called, Running (Your Mouth) With the Big Boys, and as a bonus, I offered to review résumés for attendees between the two sessions. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but what I got was eye-opening. Here’s are some pointers I developed from reading the résumés of everyone from CEOs to member service managers:

1.    Know your audience.

  • Applicants must study each job listing in which you are interested and read with a critical eye to determine what pieces of your experience to highlight in your résumé or in an interview compared to the listed requirements and responsibilities.

  • Review the company’s website, social media and other related information to get a better feel for the organization and its culture, as well as the LinkedIn pages of the hiring managers and other key executives. At least half of communication is taking in information. A friend of mine was interviewing for a job and noticed the hiring manager went to the same college as his son’s top choice, opening up an immediate conversation starter.

  • Hiring managers want to know what you have accomplished, including supporting facts and figures. Don’t just say you managed a team, increased profitability or created efficiencies. Include data and examples to support what you’re saying.

2.    Be assertive.

  • Never exaggerate, but what I saw was a tendency to downplay achievements.

  • Explain the significance of your accomplishments, such as, ‘Under my leadership, the organization turned around from declining revenues to 10% growth year-over-year.’ The piece about declining revenues provides greater context to your reader and makes the growth even more impressive.

3.    Choose the best résumé format for your situation:

  • Chronological is pretty self-explanatory; they run in reverse order from your most recent experience down to the oldest. If your résumé is more than two pages long, cut or at least significantly trim the details under those older positions.

  • Functional résumés focus more on the roles you’ve had rather than the time order or actual job title. These are appropriate when a previous experience rather than your most recent is more applicable to the position you’re currently seeking. This format will also help out if you have extended lapses in work history, such as time off for family or layoffs. And, if you have volunteer experience that demonstrates some of these skills, those can fit easily into your experience section.

  • You can always combine the chronological and functional as well if that could work to your favor. It creates flexibility and emphasizes the best of your best.

  • Finally, a targeted résumé is very specific to the position you’re seeking, so emphasize those experiences and positions, including volunteer and part-time work even if they’re not most recent.

4.    List other skills that might be useful but not listed in the job description, such as proficiency in foreign languages.

5.    Include a concise cover letter that provides information not already in your résumé but still tied into the job description, which could mean providing more color to the brief bullet points on your résumé.

6.    Update your résumé regularly whether you’re looking or not, because you never know when opportunity will strike, or a downturn will hit.